Fever Dreams
by butimnotawriter
Summary: Maura runs into an old 'friend' at the airport, causing her major pain. Jane deals with a new revelation.
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I don't any of these characters. Except for Ian's sister._

_**Author's Note**: This is my **first** fanfic.. ever. Reviews, criticism, and pointers are greatly appreciated. Enjoy._

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**_Chapter 1:_**

_"_Shit!" Maura cursed as she woke up to the familiar ringing of her phone. She looked over at the clock on her night stand, it read _9:23_. Frantic, Maura cursed softly at the alarm clock for not waking her up earlier. She was late. "Hello Mother, Yes I'm on my way. I'll be there in fifteen minutes"She swore she could feel the hives already beginning to form as she lied to her mother. Shaking the thought she quickly got dressed, skipping a shower because she knew had no time. Her mother's flight left at 10:15. Grabbing a croissant she said goodbye to Bass and headed out the door.

Maura glanced at the clock in her car _9:42. S_he knew was close to her mother's hotel, but the airport was still 20 minutes away. "I'm outside." Maura said into her phone as she could see the familiar figure of her mother emerging in front of the hotel.

"We're late." she scolded.

"I know" Maura said. "I slept through my alarm, I suppose yesterday's yoga was more intense than my body is accustomed to."

The bag boy closed the trunk and Maura tipped him as they drove off. Slightly speeding, they arrived at Logan International at around 10 o'clock. Helping her mother take her luggage out of her car she turned around hearing a familiar voice calling her name.

"Maura!" the man exclaimed. "I thought it was you."

Maura's eyes focused on the figure of the man coming towards her.

_Ian._

her heart rate quickened at the sight of him. They hugged. He kissed her cheek.

"Hello Ian, what brings you to Boston?" Maura said with a tinge of bitterness in her voice.

Constance closed the trunk and said hello to Ian. Maura told Ian she would be right back, because she had to help her mother with her luggage.

"Hello Constance." he said looking over to her.

"I'll help." Ian said. "I've got a flight to catch anyways."

Constance smiled. She always liked the two of them together.

Ian began to explain himself as they began walking.

"I'm here on a layover from Botswana, I'm picking up some more supplies and going to visit my sister in Seattle."

"Oh." was all Maura could muster.

They got to the baggage center and left Constance's bags. Maura looked at her mother and said "Tell father I said hello, Happy Anniversary, and that I wish to see him." Constance nodded her head in approval and hugged her daughter, waving goodbye to Ian before turning to go through airport security.

"Where's she going?" asked Ian.

"She's going to go visit my father in Tunisia, it's their anniversary this weekend but he's stuck there teaching." Maura said.

_"Flight 495 to Seattle Tacoma International is now boarding." _

The silence was awkward. They both heard the woman over the loud-speaker, neither wanting to move. Maura was still upset with Ian after he left her without notice the last time. _Not again. I won't let him do this to me again. _

"Goodbye Ian." Maura said breaking the silence as she turned around to leave, swaying her hips from side to side enticing him to look.

As she got in her car, Maura took in a deep breath and turned it on wanting to be as far away from Ian and that airport as possible. On her way home she begins to feel a bit light-headed, but chalks it up to not eating properly before she left that morning. When she arrives at her house, she immediately lies on her couch. Now feeling a slight headache, Maura decided to fix herself a quick sandwich before taking a nap. She got about 10 minutes of sleep before she was awoken by the sounds of her phone ringing, again. "Dr. Isles, Yes I can be there. I'm on my way, Ok. Goodbye."

Walking up to the scene, Jane and Frost were already there trying their best to analyze what had transpired in their surroundings. "Hello Detectives."

"Hi Maura." "Hey Doc." they replied_. _Maura looked down at the scene in front of her. "The victim appears to have bled out." she stated.

"Gee, wonder how that could have happened. it could have something to do with the fact that someone shoved a screwdriver through his eye socket, Maura." Jane quipped.

Her headache and light-headedness returned.

"Maura are you okay? You don't look too good." Jane said, obviously worried.

"You mean I don't look well, you're forgetting about Mr. Adverb again, Jane." Maura retorted.

Frost giggled.

Jane rolled her eyes at both of them. "I mean it, Maura. Are you feeling okay?" she asked again with genuine concern for her friend in her eyes, and in her voice.

"Jane, I'm fi-" Maura began to speak but found her self unable to finish forming her words.

She fainted almost landing in a pool of their victim's "reddish brown stain", Jane caught her.

"Yeah, you are **not** okay Maura." Jane said.

She looked at Frost and said "I'm gonna take her home."

Jane put her hand on Maura's forehead as Frost helped her carry her to Jane's car. "Oh my god Maura, you're really hot!"

By now Maura had come to, but she was still pretty faint.

"Thank you. you're not so bad yourself, Jane."

Frost stifled his laughter. Jane shot him a look.

"No Maura, I mean your skin is burning up, I think you have a fever." She explained.

"I'm gonna go get a paramedic." Jane said.

Running over to the EMT's who were all packed up and just about ready to leave, Jane explained the situation and asked them to take a look at Maura.

He came over with a thermometer and took her temperature. "102.6 and perhaps rising. her fever is relatively high you should to get her to a hospital." The EMT announced.

**Jane freaked out.**

"Ok, you take her, and I'll follow."

Jane got in her car with Frost, threw on her sirens and headed to the nearest hospital. When they arrived, Maura was immediately admitted and given medication to reduce her fever. Jane told Frost to call Korsak to come pick him up, and then to call Dr. Pike because Maura was obviously not going to be able to finish this case.

"Does it have to be Pike? I hate that guy!" Frost exclaimed.

Jane smirked and told Frost to call her if they got any leads as she turned around headed towards Maura's room. Maura was sleeping due to the medication she had been given, Jane stared at her best friend as she slept, holding her hand. The doctor walked in "Hello, ma'am. your girlfriend is going to be just fine she has a slight fever, it's probably just the Flu. The medicine we gave her has reduced her fever a few degrees and you can take her home when she wakes up."

"Thank you doctor." she said.

_**Girlfriend?** The Doctor thinks that I'm Maura's girlfriend. Why would he think that? _Jane felt Maura's hand twitch in hers bringing her back to reality. _Oh. _

Maura woke up a half hour later disoriented and confused. Her eyes settled on Jane, and she smiled.

"What am I doing here?" she asked.

"You fainted at the crime scene, and then when I felt you, you were burning up." Jane replied.

"The doctor said we can go home when you woke up, he said he thinks you just have the flu." she said to her not wanting her to worry.

"I'm ready when you are." Maura said, starting to get up.  
**_Girlfriend. _**Jane couldn't shake the thought as they walked to the car.

While they were driving, Jane got a text from Korsak asking how Maura was doing and saying they got a lead on the case. Jane said she was fine, and told Korsak to chase the lead with Frost. She wasn't gonna leave her. S_he couldn't_. When they arrived at Maura's house, Maura told Jane she was still sleepy from the medication and asked if she would take her to her room.

Showing complete disregard for her clothing or anything else, Maura began stripping on her way to her bed, she threw off her heels, blazer, blouse, and finally her skirt. when she reached her bed she was only wearing her undergarments. Jane ribbed her friend saying"man you must really be out of it if you're throwing your clothes on the floor!" Maura chuckled and climbed into bed. The last thing she saw before her eyes closed was Jane Rizzoli picking her clothes up off of the floor folding them as neatly as she could and placing them in her closet, it made her smile.

Jane snuck a peek at Maura while she was sleeping. They had been best friends for a few years now, and she had seen Maura undress before her plenty of times before. But it was different this time for some reason. _**G**_**_irlfriend._**

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**_Thank you for reading, please leave feedback._**


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters. Except for Ian's sister.. and the guy with the screwdriver sticking out of his eye._

_**Author's Note:**__ Thanks guys for your reviews, it makes me happy that you all are enjoying my first story. Also, I didn't intend for this one to be as long it is, but I got a little carried away while writing lol. Enjoy._

_**EDIT: The dream sequence seems to have confused some people, it begins at 'Maura's Dream' and ends at 'xxxxx' but in Maura's mind she's still dreaming. Hope that clears things up.**_

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**_ Chapter 2:_**

Jane awoke to the light sounds of the television, stretching and adjusting her eyes to the darkness, she went to go check on her friend.

Maura was sound asleep in her bed. _She looks so adorable while she sleeps. _Jane quickly shook the thought. _This is wrong. She's your best friend. she's not gay, and neither are you. _Maura snorted. _I wonder what she's dreaming about.. _

**_xx Maura's Dream xx_**

_"You got anything for me, Maura?" Jane asked as she approached the autopsy table._

_"I have conclusively determined that this woman was not murdered. She committed suicide, Jane. I have reason to believe she was starving herself, most likely suffering from Anorexia. Her ribs are protruding, and She has an ulcer and no stomach contents which indicate that she has not eaten in several days. In a sense her stomach began to feed on itself just to keep her alive. The cause of death however, was a single, deep cut to her Femoral Artery. She bled out in minutes." Maura said with empathy in her voice as she pulled the sheet over the woman's head._

_"That's really depressing." Jane said looking down at the white sheet._

_Frankie and Frost walk into the morgue. "Hey, you guys coming to the Robber tonight?" Frost asked._

_"Yeah." Jane said. "After that I could use a drink or two."_

_Maura turned off the lights in the morgue as Jane waited for her so they could ride together._

_As if her day couldn't get any worse, Jane got a flat tire on her way to the Robber._

_"You seem to have run over a roofing nail." Maura stated matter-of-factly._

_"Aw, where the hell did that come from? Now I gotta call Giovanni and it's gonna take him at least an hour to get here." Jane moaned._

_"Oh, No worries. I can change it. I just need a change of shoes." Maura said proudly._

_"Jeez. Maur. Is there anything you can't do?" Jane said looking down at her friend now kneeling on the ground fixing her tire._

_"All done." Maura said smiling as she got up off of the ground, brushed the dirt off of her hands and adjusted her dress._

_"Oh. you've got a little dirt on your face." Jane said licking her finger then brushing the dark spot off of Maura's soft porcelain skin. Looking into her best friends green eyes, she noticed the glimmering flecks of yellow. Jane realized her hand was still on Maura's face._

_*coughs* "Uh, yeah. We should go, Frost and Frankie are probably wondering where we are." Jane said awkwardly as she walked towards the driver's seat. What the hell just happened? She thought to herself._

_Jane turned on the radio "And the Red Sox lost to the Yankees 6-11." She turned the radio back off and scowled. I **hate** the Yankees. They drove the rest of the way in silence. Frost and Frankie exchanged knowing glances as they saw Maura and Jane walking in. "What took you guys so long?" Frost asked suggestively._

_"I got a flat and Maura had to change my tire." Jane tried to explain._

_"Oh, yeah. I bet she changed your tire real good." Frost joked._

_"Hey! she's still my sister, bro." Frankie exclaimed slapping Frost on the arm._

_Frost and Frankie's sexual innuendos were lost on Maura, so she just smiled._

_Jane rolled her eyes and ordered two shots of tequila. She downed them almost as quickly as they arrived at their table. They ordered a large basket of fries to go with their beers as they talked about their day, and Maura went on about something none of them had ever heard of. Jane looked over at her as she finished her third beer, feeling the alcohol slowly consume her, she knew she shouldn't have had that last one, now Maura has to drive her home._

_"I think you're gonna have to drive me home. I'm pretty tipsy." Jane said._

_Maura scooted out of the booth as Jane handed her the keys. "See ya tomorrow." Frost said to them as they departed the bar._

_"I wonder how much longer they're gonna go on pretending like they don't love each other." Frost said to Frankie._

_"Well, let's see, they've been friends for like 5 years.. So maybe another 5? Frankie replied._

_"Nah, I don't think it'll take that long. Jane seems to be more bold lately. I give it 2 months." Frost said._

_Instead of driving Jane to her apartment, Maura drove them to her house. When they arrived Jane thought about protesting, but was too tired and tipsy to care. Maura tossed Jane a t-Shirt to wear, as she changed into a short negligée. They laid in Maura's bed and as tired as Jane was, Maura decided to strike up conversation. Turning over to face one another Maura asked "Jane, what's the most embarrassing thing that's ever happened to you?_

_ "Maura, I'm not telling you that!" Jane shouted._

_"Well why not? I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours.." Maura said to her smiling coyly._

_She thought about it. "Dammit Maura." Jane grumbled. She doesn't know how exactly Maura gets her to do these things. Jane let out a deep sigh, and reluctantly began to tell her story._

_"You gotta promise me you wont laugh though, okay? Jane said._

_"Okay." Maura said._

_"Okay. So it was my sophomore year of High School and I was in the girl's locker room getting changing into gym clothes for my Team Sports class when Kate, Debbie, and Emily walk by and say "Hey look, it's Roly Poly Rizzoli!" Then Kate turns to me and says "I don't even know why you're in here, Rizzoli. We all know you're supposed to be in the Boys locker room." I didn't notice it then, but they took a picture of me with my shirt off and put it inside Steve Sanner's locker with the words 'Roly Poly Rizzoli is a part of the Itty Bitty Titty Committee.' written on it. I was mortified, I had the hugest crush on Steve. A few weeks later he ended up taking me out on a pity date. _

_Maura giggled. Jane punched her arm. "Ouch! Why did you hit me Jane?!"_

_"You promised you wouldn't laugh." Jane said softly._

_"Well, technica-" Jane punched Maura's arm again this time letting it rest against her arm._

_They stared at each other for what seemed like an eternity before one of them spoke. Maura reached out and touched Jane's face. They inched closer together. Jane placed a soft kiss on Maura's lips. What am I doing? Jane quickly retracted from their kiss and began apologizing as she sat up, making her way off the bed._

_"I'm sorry, Maura. I don't know what came over me."_

_Maura grabbed Jane by the arm and said "Jane you don't have to apologize to me, you don't know how long I've been waiting for you to do that."_

_"**WHAT**." Jane said in shock and disbelief at the words Maura had just uttered._

_"I've had feelings for you for a while but I never said anything because I didn't want to ruin our friendship, I didn't think you felt the same way. You're the only friend I've ever had and I would never want to jeopardize that." She had said the words so quietly Jane had barely even heard them._

_Maura pulled Jane towards her planted a kiss on her lips, this time however, it was more intense more passionate. Jane slipped her tongue in Maura's mouth, tasting a hint of the beer she had consumed earlier. They wrestled around on the bed one never on top for longer than a few minutes. Maura noticed that they had begun to sweat, she could see the moisture accumulating on Jane's brow as she lifted her shirt off of Jane. Jane stopped as soon as she realized her shirt was off, her hands flying to cover her scar and chest._

**xxxxxxxxxxxx**

"You're a good kisser, Jane." Maura mumbled in her sleep just as Jane walked out of her room. Jane froze. _Did I just hear that right? _Jane was intrigued as she walked back into the room and sat down at the edge of Maura's bed. Maura was sweating, her whole body was moist. Jane pressed the back of her scarred palm to Maura's forehead. Her skin was clammy.

Jane began looking around Maura's apartment for a thermometer. She quickly remembered she had seen one in the kitchen a few months back. Jane ran into the kitchen and looked in the drawer marked 'T' she found the thermometer along with some tongs and tweezers. _Thanks, Ma. _Jane thought to herself as she ran back to Maura sticking the thermometer in her mouth, and gently rubbing her forehead waiting for the Mercury to settle.

She couldn't tell if it was 105 or 106, but she knew she was gonna have to take Maura to the hospital anyways. She quickly dressed her friend in a BPD t-shirt and some yoga pants then carried her to the car. "What's wrong, Jane? Why'd you stop?" Maura mumbled out loud, her fever making her increasingly delusional.

"What are you talking about, Maura? You're sick and I'm taking you to the hospital." Jane stated just as Maura reached out and touched the area around Jane's scar. Jane flinched.

"It's okay." she mumbled. "I don't care. You're still beautiful." Jane's eyes began to tear as she walked around to the other side of the car and put it into gear.

Bursting through the emergency room, she was surprised to see so many people working in the hospital at 4am on a Saturday. One of the nurses approached them asking what was wrong.

"She's got a really high fever, around 106 when we left the house. She is also a bit delusional. She was here earlier, but the doctor discharged her after giving her some medication he said would help calm her fever." Jane explained.

"Okay, I'm gonna put her in a room." She said bringing over a wheelchair so that Jane didn't have to carry her the whole way there.

Jane was sitting in the chair watching Maura sleep, and listening to the sounds of her heart rate monitor when the doctor came in.

"Hi again._"_ The doctor said trying to be as cheery as possible.

Jane narrowed her eyes and stared at him blankly."You said the medication would make her better, but instead she got worse."

"Uh. yes. That's why I'm here." Dr. Robbins said shifting uncomfortably. "I'm afraid I have some bad news.." He paused. "Your girlfriend seems to have contracted Meningitis."


	3. Chapter 3

_Author's Note: I don't own any of these characters. Except for Ian's sister.. and the guy with the screwdriver sticking out of his eye, Dr. Robbins and his nurses._

_Summary: Maura runs into an old 'friend' at the airport, causing her major pain. Jane deals with a new revelation._

_**Chapter 3:**_

**_Meningitis. The words echoed in Jane's head, not entirely sure how to process the information the doctor just told her._**

Jane's jaw dropped, her heart sunk. She swore she could feel it touching the floor. She looked up at the doctor, her eyes swelling with tears "is she gonna be okay?" Was all Jane could choke out.

"We're not exactly sure what strain of Meningitis she has contracted, but we're going to run some tests to determine exactly which one is affecting her."

"Meningitis isn't deadly though, is it? Jane asked so quietly she feared the doctor may not have heard her.

"The bacterial strain can cause blindness, hearing loss, brain damage, loss of speech and memory, kidney and adrenal gland failure, shock and ultimately death if not treated in time. The viral strain however, is not deadly."

"So why the hell are we standing around here talking. fix her!" Jane snarled. She didn't notice the nurse who had walked in carrying a hospital gown.

"I'm afraid we're going to have to quarantine you, you may have been exposed and we don't want to take any chances." The doctor informed Jane.

"I'm not leaving her, I can't leave her." Jane whispered looking over to Maura's heart rate monitor and listening to the sounds of the slow beeping.

Feeling her stubbornness Dr. Robbins had the nurse prep the bed next to Maura's for Jane. Jane quickly changed into her hospital gown and laid in the bed with the curtains open as one nurse hooked her up to an IV, and took a sample of Jane's blood.

"What are you doing to her?" Jane asked worried. staring at the long needle the nurse was wielding.

"I'm prepping her so that Dr. Robbins can conduct a Spinal Tap. All he's gonna do is collect a bit of her spinal fluid so we can test it and conclusively determine which strain of Meningitis she has contracted." The nurse stated matter-of-factly.

"Will it hurt her?" Jane asked softly.

"She will be anesthetized and she may feel a _little_ bit of pressure and perhaps some nausea, but other than that she'll be fine." He said, calmly reassuring her.

Laying back against the pillow, Jane finally felt the effects of her day with Maura and being awake for 17 plus hours begin to take a toll on her. Her eyelids were growing heavy as she looked towards the window and saw the sky begin to lighten. Jane rolled over in her bed to look at Maura one more time before she finally succumbed to the beckoning call of sleep.

**Jane's dream~**

_Jane knocked on Maura's door, fully dressed and ready to go for a run. Not exactly how she wanted to spend her Saturday off, but she her and Maura haven't been spending as much time together lately. A groggy Maura opens her door clad in a Chartreuse silk robe. The pale yellow-greenish colors complimented her eyes. Jane bit her lip._

_"Dammit Maura! This stupid early morning run was your idea and you totally forgot. I could've slept in! Jane said bitterly._

_"Come in, and I'll make you breakfast."_

_"I'm not hungry." Jane grumbled, still upset over the fact that she could've slept in. Jane's stomach grumbled._

_Maura narrowed her eyes at Jane, and smiled knowing her friend rarely ever made herself breakfast._

_Jane sat on the couch and turning the TV on looking for something interesting to watch. "Ooh,There's a Law & Order: SVU marathon on all day." She said out loud._

_"I thought you hated that show?" Maura quipped._

_"Well, I don't __**hate**__ it. I just think it's an extremely unrealistic portrayal of how detectives work.. I would know." Jane stated proudly._

_"I mean come on, Maur. Do you really expect me to believe that some psychopath murders an innocent person or group of people and they miraculously find the smallest hair, or fiber, or partial print and bust the scumbag in an hour? Really?" Jane replied._

_"So then why are you watching?" Maura asked chuckling._

_"I dunno, because there's nothing else on at 7:shitty in the morning." Jane said as she glared at Maura._

_Ignoring Jane's dirty look Maura continued to cook. The smell of eggs filling the house._

_Maura finished cooking and placed a plate in front of Jane as she settled on the couch alongside her._

_"Yes! Bacon!" Jane yelled in excitement._

_"So you forgive me for forgetting our run and waking you up early? Maura giggled looking Jane in the face._

_"I guess so." Jane mumbled through a mouth full of eggs and bacon._

_"What's going on?" Maura asked._

_"Olivia decides to go undercover in a women's prison to figure out which guard killed this little girl's mom."_

_"Oh my that seems a little intense." Maura said, her mind wandering, thinking about what she would do if Jane ever went undercover in such a brutal, filthy place. She shook the thought from her mind._

_"Are they actually this abusive, Jane?"_

_"Well, sometimes they may use a little unnecessary force to keep the inmates in line, but they're dealing with the scum of the earth, Maur." Jane said trying to remain impartial._

_"Inmate or not, they're still people, Jane."_

_*scene where Olivia almost gets raped by guard.*_

_Maura leans over and grabs Jane's arm, clutching her tightly. Jane twitches due to the sudden contact._

_"Oh, good. She's safe." Maura says as she releases her grip on Jane's arm._

_*credits start to roll. "The Law & Order: SVU More than Partners Marathon continues next, on USA."*_

_"More Than Partners marathon? Really? He's married with kids." Jane said._

_"I believe they are referring to the chemistry the two main characters share, it's usually evident with the way the speak, look, and act around each other. A lot of shows like to write in subtext between their two main characters to tease viewers with the whole will they/won't they get together." Maura replied matter-of-factly._

_"I guess. But isn't that like tricking the viewers?"_

_"Well, I guess it depends on whether or not they end up together." Maura said as she got up and put the dishes in the sink, looking over at Jane._

_"I'm gonna go get ready." Maura said to Jane who was clearly wrapped up in the next episode of SVU._

_Two and a half hours later, Maura emerged wearing a tight Grey pencil skirt, with a Creme silk ruffled blouse, and black pumps. Her outfit accentuating all of her best features._

_"Okay, I'm ready to go now, Jane."_

_"Alright, just wait a second. I wanna find out who kil-" Jane's mouth went dry. She tried to finish her sentence but her words were all jumbled up in her head. She stared at Maura's cleavage no longer paying attention to the banter between Elliot and Olivia._

_Stop ogling her Jane, she's not a piece of meat._

_"Jane!" Maura exclaimed trying to bring Jane back down to earth._

_"Huh, what?" Jane managed to mumble still staring at Maura's cleavage._

_" I asked you where you wanna go eat lunch."_

_"Oh. Uh, wherever's fine." Jane said not making eye contact._

_Maura didn't know what to make of 'Flustered Jane' but she couldn't help but feel a little excited at the thought of her outfit making Jane so flustered._

_"We're gonna have to swing by my apartment so I can change." Jane said looking down at her frumpy running clothes._

_When they arrived at Jane's apartment, Jane threw on a black blazer, a tank top, a pair of tight jeans, and her trusty old boots as she headed out the door to meet Maura back in the car._

_They settled on a little Italian place near Jane's apartment. When they were seated, Jane's eyes were fixed on Maura. She was thinking about what it would be like to just rip that blouse open and suck on her— "Jane!" Maura called out as Jane quickly snapped back to reality._

_"What are you ordering?" Maura said with a tinge of annoyance in her voice. Jane didn't even notice the waitress next to her._

_"Uh, I think i'll have the Chicken Parmigiana."_

_"Ok. and what would you like to drink?"_

_"I'll take a beer and a coke please." with their orders filled, the waitress left them._

_"Jane, what's wrong with you?" You've been acting strangely all morning." Maura asked._

_"Nothing. I'm fine."_

_"You're lying." she countered._

_"No I'm not!" Jane cried defensively._

_"Yes. you are. I can see it in your face. Come on, spill." Maura pressed._

_"I'm attracted to you." Jane blurted out, her face wincing in horror awaiting her best friends reaction._

_"OH." Maura gulped shifting in her chair attempting to process this new information._

_"I think I'm gonna go." Jane said, visibly uncomfortable. Scooting out of her chair, she putt a few bills on the table to cover her portion._

_"Jane wait." Maura said grabbing her arm as she walked past her._

_"I'm attracted to you too." Maura said meekly with her head down. She could feel her cheeks blushing._

_"Jane.. Jane.. Jane.."_

"What Maura?" Jane awoke to Dr. Robbins standing over her.

"Oh, hey doc. How's she doing?" Jane grumbled as she sprang up.

"I have some good news, based on the spinal tap we were able to conclusively determine she has the viral strain of Meningitis. We've started her on some antibiotics and she's estimated to make a full recovery in approximately 10 days."

"That's great." Jane said smiling and looking over at Maura who was still sleeping soundly.

"What about me?" Jane asked reverting her attention back to the doctor.

"You're fine. We only made you to stay as a precaution. We've put you on some antibiotics as well just in case." Dr. Robbins replied before turning to walk away.

"Wait!"

"When can we go home?" Jane asked.

"You're free to go now, but we're gonna keep her a few extra days until we're positive she's no longer contagious."

Jane checked out of the hospital, but returned to Maura's room and sat in the chair at her bedside just as she was waking up.

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**I made a tumblr for my fanfics. I do plan on making a few more, I have a few ideas in my mind that I hope will pan out better than this one did. I have listened to your reviews, I went back and fixed what you guys told me to fix. I might just update on tumblr because it's easier. Thank you again for reading and reviewing. butimnotawriter . tumblr . com**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Author's Note: I don't own any of these characters. Except for Ian's sister.. and the guy with the screwdriver sticking out of his eye, and Dr. Robbins and his nurses. Also, sorry I haven't updated this in a while, my computer died and I lost what I was already working on. It was a bitch to try to remember so I had to go back to square one. I hope you guys like it. I think I'm only gonna do one more chapter of this. Review and tell me what you think. Thank you for reading.**_

_**Chapter 4:**_

"Morning Sleeping Beauty." Jane exclaimed sarcastically.

"What happened? Why am I in the hospital?" Maura asked her friend, the past couple of days being a bit of a blur.

Jane figured she would just tell her easily, like ripping off a band-aid.

"Uh, you have Meningitis.." Jane replied nonchalantly.

"That's what caused your high fever which caused your delusions."

"WHAT?" Maura exclaimed silently freaking out while taking a minute to process the information she had just received.

"The doctor did some spinal crack thing and took some fluid out of your back to test. You only have the viral kind so doc says you'll be good as new in a few days."

The blonde let out a sigh of relief as she let Jane's words soak into her mind.

"It's called a Spinal Tap." She couldn't help but correct the other woman.

Jane rolled her eyes in slight annoyance.

"Anyways, how did you get it? Doc says you can only get it from close contact with someone infected, and me, Frankie, Frost, Tommy, Korsak, and Ma are the only ones you're ever around and we don't have it."

"I don't know." The honey blonde replied trying to recall the events of the previous day.

Maura's memory flashed back to the airport when she was helping her mother remove her luggage from the car.

_"I thought it was you."_

The voice echoed inside her head.

_They hugged. _

_He kissed her cheek._

_Ian. _

Her eyes narrowed as she touched her cheek.

"Son of bitch." Maura cursed.

"Whoa, do I detect some hostility there Dr. Isles?" Jane quipped.

"Ian." Maura said trying to mask her anger.

Jane grew a disgusted look on her face, her blood boiled at the thought of him. She _hated_ him for putting Maura through all that pain.

"I ran into Ian at the airport he was here on a layover from Botswana, he was picking up some more medical supplies and going to go visit his sister in Seattle." Maura informed her best friend.

"He offered to take my mother's luggage inside."

"Of course he did." Jane said bitterly.

"He must've contracted it in Botswana."

The blonde shot up quickly panicking.

"My mother, Jane. She could be infected as well!"

Jane grabbed Maura's hand and began to rub her palm.

"I'm sure she's fine, and even if she did get it they can find a hospital over there to treat her, she'll be fine." Jane's low voice was oddly reassuring.

"Speaking of mothers, I better call mine. She's probably freaking out."

Jane whipped out her phone and saw she only had one bar. She knew better than to start that phone call with one bar, but she wasn't gonna leave Maura. She decided to send a text instead.

_Ma, Maura and I are at the hospital. Maura has Meningitis and she's gonna have to stay here until she's not contagious anymore. Don't worry, we're fine._

_- Jane_

Feeling good about the message, she pressed send. Scrolling through her contacts to look for Frost's number to see what was going on with the screwdriver guy case.

_Any of those leads pan out?_

_- Jane_

Jane looked up from her phone to see that the nurse had brought them breakfast. Oatmeal for Maura and eggs, bacon, and toast for Jane.

She felt her phone buzz just as she took her first spoonful of eggs.

_What! Jane Clementine Rizzoli why is this the first I'm hearing of this! I'm OMW._

_- Ma_

Jane chuckled at the thought of her mother trying to break though the glass doors where they were being kept.

Snapping back to reality, Jane turned her attention to the tiny hand inching its way to grab a slice of bacon.

"Ow!" The honey blonde exclaimed as she rubbed the reddening back of her hand.

"I thought you said bacon is full of fat and clogs your arteries?"

"It is, and it does. But it's so tasty." Maura whined, and Jane laughed as she shared a piece with her."

"Besides, this oatmeal tastes like crap."

she looks so adorable when she pouts.

Jane quickly shook the thought out of her head as she finished eating her food.

_Found a crack in the wife's alibi. Gonna bring her in for questioning._

_- Frost_

_How's working with Dr. Pike? Did he find anything weird on the body I should know about?_

_- Jane_

_Nah, but It took him 2 hours to 'prep' the autopsy room because "Dr. Isles is mediocre in her work and doesn't know how to properly assemble an autopsy room." - Then he went on to say she only got the job 'cause she's a woman and he was "yet again penalized for being a white male." - Jane, I swear I was thisclose to plunging that screwdriver through his eye. Doc ok?_

_- Frost_

_LOL. She's doing better, the medication is working she should be out soon. Get back to work, keep me posted._

_- Jane_

She chuckled again, staring at the picture of her and Maura as her wallpaper waiting for the screen on her phone to time out.

"What's so funny?"

"Pike is driving Frost crazy, and it's hilarious." Jane said smiling, partly wishing she could be back at work.

"He said the only reason you got the ME gig here is because you're a woman and that you don't know how to properly assemble an autopsy room and he's being penalized for being a white male yet again" Jane said laughing as she told Maura what Frost told her.

"I am fairly capable of assembling an autopsy room." Maura said scoffing.

"And he better not be sitting in my chair!" Maura grumbled as she thought about the last time he sat in it and changed the support settings.

There was a commotion outside, they could hear yelling. Jane quickly got up.

"Sounds like Ma's here."

She walked up to the glass door to see Angela threatening to physically hurt him if he didn't let her inside to see her babies.

Jane knocked on the glass door, the pair stopped their arguing to look over at her.

"Hi ma."

"Janie, you look terrible!"

"Gee, thanks ma." She replied sarcastically.

"Janie tell him to let me in there. How's Maura doing?"

"She's fine ma, and he can't let you in here 'cause Maura might still be contagious."

Angela looked down dejectedly and went to go sit in the lobby.

* * *

"One Jack." Jane says as she places her card gently on the tray.

Dr. Robbins walked in on Jane teaching Maura how to play Bullshit. "Hello ladies I-"

"Bullshit!" Maura cries out excitedly.

"Aw, dammit Maura! Stop reading my facial expressions it's not fair."

Dr. Robbins cleared his throat to announce his presence in the room.

"I have some good news." he said pausing. "You can go home today, I'll send a nurse in with the paperwork."

"Thank you, doctor." The pair said simultaneously.

Maura flashed her cards at Jane as the doctor left.

"I didn't have to read your facial expressions, Jane. I have all four Jacks."

"It's not this easy when you're playing with more than two people." Jane said.

A nurse walked in to unhook Maura from her IV, although she could have done it herself.

"I'm gonna go to the bathroom." Jane announced as she walked away, grabbing the leftovers of the Lasagna her mother made for them and throwing it in the garbage.

"She's beautiful." The nurse said looking at Maura as she turned off the heart rate monitor.

"You two are lucky to have each other." She continued. "True love is hard to find these days."

Maura sat there with her mouth agape. _True love._

The nurses words resonated inside of her head.

"Uh.. we.. we.. aren't a couple." The honey blonde said to the nurse.

The nurse paused and raised her eyebrow.

"You're not? Dr. Robbins has been calling you girlfriends this entire time. Your 'friend' didn't correct him when he said it to her."

Maura sat in shock.

"What?" Maura asked the nurse with a look on her face indicating she had no idea her best friend was in love with her.

"Yeah, she never said anything. So we all just assumed you were a couple. She carried you into the hospital, stayed with you for 2 days, held your hand while you slept, and refused to leave after she found out you were sick even if you could've infected her. If that's not love, I don't know what is." the nurse replied disposing of the half empty IV and grabbing the bag that contained Maura's clothing.

The blonde took off her hospital gown and slid the faded and worn grey BPD shirt over herself. She grabbed the collar and sniffed it, it smelled faintly like Jane.

The nurse shot her a look, narrowing her eyes and raising an eyebrow.

Maura had known for a while that her feelings for Jane were anything but platonic, but she kept them hidden to herself because she feared Jane wouldn't feel the same way. She couldn't lose the one and only friend she's ever had in her entire life.

"I had no idea it was so obvious." The honey blonde whispered to the nurse.

"Had no idea what was so obvious?" Jane said as she sauntered back into the room.

Maura could feel her face burning, it was probably bright red. She was glad Jane only heard that last part of their conversation. She knew she couldn't lie to her.

"Uh, The secret ingredient to the perfect apple pie." The nurse quickly interjected reading the plea in Maura's eyes.

"Oh?" Jane asked intrigued, raising an eyebrow at Maura knowing full well that wasn't what they were talking about.

"What is it?" Jane looked at Maura, then the nurse, then back at Maura.

"Nutmeg." They said at the same time.

Just as Dr. Robbins walked in with the release papers.

"I'm gonna need you to sign here Ms. Isles." Dr. Robbins said as he handed her a pen.

"Now I'm gonna need you to rest, and drink lots of fluids. It's imperative that you keep yourself hydrated."

He wasn't telling her anything she didn't already know.

Maura finished dressing, and grabbed the rest of her things. As she and Jane were headed towards the door Dr. Robbins called out after them.

"One more thing, try to avoid as much close contact as you can." He said. "Which I know will be hard for you two lovebirds." He said smiling. The nurse snickered.

Maura's face turned beet red as she looked at Jane in horror, Jane felt her entire body tense. She couldn't even look Maura in the eye for fear she would read her face and figure out exactly what she was thinking.


End file.
